Fiddlehead Cake

 This cake hails from one of the northernmost points of our state, Van Buren, in Aroostook County. I studied at UMPI, and I have a friend who lives in Caribou, so I'm familiar with the far reaches of our beautiful state. Claudette Rossignol submitted this recipe, and she tells a hilarious story about how to clean fiddleheads, which you'll just have to buy the cookbook to read. Read it sitting down and I guarantee you will fall out of your chair laughing.

This is a beautiful, moist cake. I guess the oil contributes in a large way to the heaviness of the cake, but not heavy in a detrimental way. When you cut a piece, just don't let your eyes be bigger than your stomach, because a little goes a long way to filling you up.

I like the walnuts in the cake, as they compliment the fiddleheads. In fact, I'd probably add more, next time around. I did not use the recommended raisins. Just because I didn't want to fill up the cake space with too many flavors. When dealing with such an unusual cake, I think simpler is better.

The directions said to grate the fiddleheads. I probably should have done that, in retrospect. It would have spread the flavor throughout the cake, rather than biting into a chunk here and there. I chopped them instead. Too chunky, I now realize. I think putting the fiddleheads into the food processor and pulsing would do the trick. Sort of like what I did with the Holiday Cranberry Pudding (see blog), pulsing the cranberries so that they became like confetti, dispersed throughout the cake.

A little whipped cream, and this cake is served. You may only get the brave to try it, being so unusual. But a true fiddlehead fan is going to love this cake.